


memories of time long past (take me back, oh, take me back)

by mutents



Category: Agent Carter (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Captain America: Civil War (Movie), F/M, Families of Choice, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Not Canon Compliant
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-08
Updated: 2019-12-08
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:35:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21715423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mutents/pseuds/mutents
Summary: Tony slipped quietly into the church, settling into a pew just as the first strains of the opening hymn started.
Relationships: Peggy Carter & Tony Stark, Peggy Carter/Daniel Sousa
Comments: 3
Kudos: 101





	memories of time long past (take me back, oh, take me back)

Tony slipped quietly into the church, settling into a pew just as the first strains of the opening hymn started.

He glanced up at the front, seeing the familiar face of his Aunt Peggy looking back at him. The picture that had been chosen didn't do her justice; it did a fine job of showing her as the stern tactician that created an intelligence and espionage powerhouse. But Aunt Peggy...

She'd always been more than that.

One of Tony's first vivid memories was of her; it had been a balmy spring day, the perfect kind to be spent outside. She'd been sitting on the patio with Jarvis, reminiscing about something or other - Tony couldn't remember what for the life of him. What he remember was the warmth of the sun, and the slight stickiness of the dirt he was playing in. He remembered the comforting lilt to their words, an accent that Tony would come to associate with a certain kind of peace. He remembered the indulgent smile she'd given him when he presented her with an extra long worm he'd found, much to Jarvis' dismay. He remembered her picking him up and settling him on her lap - mud, worm, and all - while Jarvis fussed over the state of both of their clothing. Tony remembered Aunt Peggy waving the man off, telling him to stop being a mother hen. She told him that she'd had her own children, thank you, and certainly knew the messes that accompanied them. A part of Tony could have sworn she'd made some sort of joke about getting far dirtier working with Jarvis for Tony's father, but sometimes he waved that away as being something his mind added at a later date - sometime after he'd locked himself away in Aunt Peggy and Uncle Daniel's office, reading through their old files until he fell asleep among the papers. He could remember playing with the worm on the patio table, paying far more attention to the creature than to the conversation being held. He could perfectly recall the bright smile on his Aunt Peggy's face, and even the exasperated fondness that rested on Jarvis's.

Most of all, Tony remembered feeling loved.

That was the over arching theme of his interactions with his Aunt Peggy; feeling safe and warm. There were really only three people he ever felt that way with; Jarvis, Peggy, and Uncle Daniel.

With a shake of his head, Tony focused once again on the present. The hymns had finished, and the priest was standing in front of the gathered crowd, saying something about how a life spent with Christ was a life well lived. Tony only just managed to bite back his snort.

Aunt Peggy had never been a religious woman. She'd told him once, whispering in his ear during a Christmas Mass when he was six or so, that God had a funny way of hiding when he was needed most. Young Tony hadn't been so quick to hide his laughter; he'd received a lecture from his father after Mass. Peggy, on the other hand, had received an annoyed, but fond, smile from her husband.

That was also the year that Uncle Daniel had gifted Tony a baseball glove and a ball, telling him that if he asked his father really nicely, he'd play catch with him. Tony had caught the look that Aunt Peggy had leveled at his father, but hadn't been able to understand the meaning of it at the time. No, but he could remember never playing catch with his father; that was an activity limited to Uncle Daniel.

That had been the year that Aunt Peggy had given him a fishing rod, telling him that as a young man of his age it was crucial that he learned how to fish. She also promised that as soon as it was warm enough out, she and Daniel would take him to Central Park to go fishing; maybe even bring a picnic basket, make a day of it.

His father had hemmed and hawed, talking about what a messy past time fishing was. Tony's mother hadn't said anything herself; she'd long ago learned to pick her battles, and fishing wasn't worth going to war over.

Peggy and Daniel, though, had come through on their promise. On a warm May day, Uncle Daniel had carried the blanket, Aunt Peggy the basket, and the than seven year old Tony had been given the rods. They'd settled down next to Harlem Meer, fishing for an hour or so before eating lunch. After lunch, they had relaxed on the blanket; Uncle Daniel taking a nap in the sun, Aunt Peggy reading through a battered poetry book, and Tony playing with his Captain America action figure.

Tony couldn't remember the exact sequence of events that led to the leg of the figurine breaking off, but he remembered shaking Uncle Daniel awake and begging him to fix it. The older man had done all he could, before quietly telling Tony that there was nothing he could do. Tony had given a sad nod in return, his eyes flickering to the crutch that laid off a little ways.

The next time Aunt Peggy and Uncle Daniel had come over for lunch with Jarvis, Tony had rushed to show them the metal crutch he'd fitted the Captain with. He'd used some of his father's scraps, building something similar to what Uncle Daniel used, but slightly more advanced. He received a tight hug from the man in return, and a brand new figure from Aunt Peggy after lunch.

Tony had had an amazing time playing with the two action figures; the Captain America with the crutch used it to his advantage, fighting with it how he might have fought with the shield - like it was an extension of himself. The new one came with not only the shield, but a spring loaded arm that could throw the small plastic disc.

The familiar sound of Sharon's voice brought Tony back from his memories.

Tony was unsurprised to realize just how different her memories of Aunt Peggy were from his. Sharon had always been enamored of her great-aunt - had always wanted to be like her. But, where she'd found inspiration, Tony had found respite.

He remembered that picture of Aunt Peggy and JFK; he'd been as amazed by it at one point as Sharon had. But, where that picture had been a focus of Sharon's, for Tony the photographs that told the real story were the ones hung up in her house. The pictures of Michael and Eva, growing from kids to adults in a matter of feet. There were ones of Aunt Peggy in groups - though you could always tell that it was Uncle Daniel behind the lens, because she was the focus of the image. Several were of her and Uncle Daniel standing or seated next to Tony's mother and father, always in their best clothing and at some sort of event. Others were more intimate; pictures of them with Ana and Jarvis, always with brilliant smiles on their faces.

Listening to Sharon talk of compromise, Tony found himself recalling a much different Peggy-ism:

"There is nothing more important in life than trust; you have to be certain that the people in your life will always have your back, or you'll find yourself with a knife there instead of a friend."

Tony had tried to live by that. It hadn't always worked out, of course - the world would be a much different place if Tony hadn't trusted Stane. On the whole, though, he'd done a decent job of finding people he could trust; Pepper, Rhodey, Happy... Even Steve, Natasha, Fury, and Hill, to a certain extent.

He'd wanted to sit with Aunt Peggy, Uncle Daniel and Jarvis during his parents funeral. Stane hadn't given him a choice; they'd sat several pews back while Stane stood next to Tony in the front row, a heavy hand on his shoulder. Afterwards, there had been photo opportunities, while Peggy, Daniel, and Jarvis stood to the side, watching the spectacle with narrowed eyes.

Tony stood quietly, sneaking out of the church as the pallbearers stood up at the front. Sharon had given him the opportunity to be one, but he'd politely declined; after all, how was he supposed to explain to her that he had frequently bouts of numbness on his left side.

Tony stepped out into the bright sunshine - something he knew was an oddity in London - and looked up at the sky.

These next few days would determine the next few decades. He'd need to have a clear head for it all - or, as close to one as he could get. Sudden emotional outbursts wouldn't help anyone.

Pushing his sunglasses higher up on the bridge of his nose, he started down the stairs of the church and over to his car. He'd allowed himself his tears on the plane ride to England.

Now, it was time to get to work.

**Author's Note:**

> So, uh... I haven't published anything in almost two years? In my defense, a lot has happened. I moved to Hawaii for a while? And got a boyfriend? Like wow, man... Life is crazy.


End file.
